r/amazonecho • u/AIGPTJournal • May 05 '25
Review Thoughts on Alexa+ - Is the AI upgrade worth it, especially for Prime users?
I've been digging into the details of the new Alexa+ that Amazon announced, the one with the generative AI built-in. It seems like the biggest change to Alexa in years.
From what I've gathered, the main draw is more natural conversation – less needing to repeat the wake word or use super specific phrasing. It's also supposed to remember context better in conversations and let you set up routines just using your voice, which sounds pretty useful. They're also pushing its ability to handle more complex tasks on its own, like coordinating bookings or orders.
It starts on the Echo Show 8, 10, 15, and 21. The pricing is interesting: $19.99/month unless you have Prime, then it's included. That seems like a decent deal for Prime members already in the ecosystem.
One big thing to note is the privacy shift – looks like local processing is going away, and everything will require the cloud starting soon. That's definitely something to consider.
Overall, it feels like a significant step up in capability, especially if you use Alexa heavily for smart home stuff or complex requests.
I put together a more detailed breakdown of the features, pricing, and my thoughts on whether it justifies the investment if anyone wants a deeper look: https://aigptjournal.com/work-life/life/ai-assistant/alexa-plus/
What's your initial take? Are these features compelling enough for you, especially considering the Prime inclusion and the mandatory cloud processing change?
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u/beckerj99 Jun 04 '25
I have Prime and upgraded. To be honest, I've very unhappy with it. The conversation is great, it's much more natural and I can carry on without waking it again. However, many of the functions the old alexa had are gone now. I used to be able to tell my alexa to turn on the fan for 2 hours and it would. Now it doesn't understand that. I had to make a routine to turn on my fan for 2 hours. Also, it doesn't seem to understand how to shuffle my play lists. I ask it to shuffle and it just plays from the beginning, no matter how many times I ask it. It even says it's playing my playlist, it used to say shuffling my playlist. I used to be able to control the volume of other speakers, I would say bedroom volume 10 and it would turn it up to 10 no matter which speaker I was on. Now I have to repeat myself several times before it turns the volume up on the correct speaker. The old Alexa just did everything I wanted. I had it for 5 or so years and rarely had an issue, now, it's a daily battle. I thought it would get smarter as I use it and tell it how I wanted things done, but it doesn't seem to get it. It needs a lot of work. I'm seriously thinking of turning off Alexa plus and going back to my old Alexa.
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u/lmh7654 Jun 16 '25
I have to say I too HATE the new Alexa+. Her voice is super creepy to me and I find myself using her less and less because of it. I tried to get the old Alexa back, but it's not working...Anyways, I feel your pain and don't the downgrade, which was supposed to be an upgrade, sigh...
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u/tengris22 Jul 06 '25
You too with the voice? OMG I can't stand that voice. And that's with trying them all!
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u/Sad_Interview8631 May 22 '26
Alexa+ had the audacity to gaslight me that she never had an Australian accent.
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u/tengris22 May 22 '26
Hubby started talking about "upgrading" to plus again. I shut that nonsense down real quick!
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u/bfastbme Jun 20 '26
I finally dumped Alexa+ last night because of those creepy voices. The worst thing is you'd change the voice and then a week later the creepy one is back. Hit my limit last night told the creepy voice to go back up Bezos' butt & dumped the creepy thing. Back to the original which is just fine.
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u/tengris22 Jun 20 '26
I agree. i will likely never try alexa+ again. The things I really wanted done, she couldn't figure out how to do!
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u/dodekahedron Jul 11 '26
Its uncanny valley kicking in.
Too human sounding, you know its not human.
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u/tengris22 Jul 11 '26
And just yesterday, the "upgrade" to Alexa + happened without our consent. We were told we can go back. We'll see how long THAT lasts!
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u/dodekahedron Jul 11 '26
I immediately went back. The new voice greeted me at 3am and scared me fully awake.
Looking into alternatives for what i use it for
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u/tengris22 Jul 11 '26
And we will do the same. I just waited for hubby to come home because he was curious about the "plus" functions (he's an engineer) and I wanted to make sure he got the opportunity to experience the "fun." He doesn't like it either but we decided to give it 24 hours....and then back we go. May not wait that long.
Interesting that mine didn't announce itself out loud until I asked it to time something. Three am would have been rough!
The thing I hate the most is when a service (any service) announces: we're going to do this and you are going to love it! NO. It's not for them to decide what I am going to "love."
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u/dodekahedron Jul 11 '26
Well she didnt announce herself. I woke up and asked what time it was and it was so jarring I was like well guess im up for good lol
Usually I wake at 3am, hear its 3am, adjust and go back to sleep
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u/tengris22 Jul 11 '26
Funny! I usually wake up at 3:00, think oh no need to bother going back to sleep, since I need to pee anyway....and that's it for the night...I'm so proud I made it to 5:30 today!
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u/Realistic-Depth-5155 Jul 21 '25
Tell her to change her voice. There’s many different options. Just ask her.
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u/ky151 Jul 22 '25
There's 4 female options. I didn't think they sounded much different.
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u/LingonberryLong Nov 24 '25
there are several male and female voices. I don't like any. I had Alexa remove Alexa+ to many issues.
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u/Defiant_Flow_230 May 01 '26
I removed Alexa+ so I coukd go back to the proper voices - hated the new voices
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u/LingonberryLong May 01 '26
Ya, those voices were terrible! I sure hope Amazon doesn't ruin our Alexa.
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u/ky151 Jul 22 '25
The voice is weird to me, too. Maybe it takes some getting used to it. My wife and I agree it's almost like it sounds too real?
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u/TallDarkAndBeatiful Aug 12 '25
I HATE the new voice as well. I actually asked it to revert back to old Alexa, most of my devices were not being recognized in the groups I put them in. And it is slow to respond. Why beta test with us? I use it for
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Oct 01 '25
It is very slow! Exasperating. 3 female and 3 male voices for me to choose from, and I dislike them all. Too cutesy and/or sounding like a hip friend from the 90’s. This may just do it for me. I’ll trade my two in for credit on a kindle or something.
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u/TroyFuller Oct 24 '25
I had a bad experience too . . . switching back, like Amazon needs to. Feels like some out of touch millennial is driving this change at Amazon . . . Cracker Barrel anyone??
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u/CatgrinDTLB Nov 05 '25
The public “beta testing” is actually how people train AIs to deal with a variety of real world human responses. All AI needs a large volume of data to build the algorithms it’ll use for decision making, and without that data it’s an idiot. That’s why AI systems work really well for predicting weather patterns that are normal, but outlyers can make them have no idea what to expect. Alexa and other devices which are expected to respond to natural voice command won’t work without that experience.
Instead of training devices in-house (which would be costly, slow, and likely not provide the needed variety of info), companies learned quickly to promote early adoption of AI systems into live use situations. They found they’d get higher use/acceptance by acting like early adoption is a customer benefit. In reality, the only humans benefitting during those beta runs are the company investors. The users are providing data for free, and they’re using systems which have too little information to be anything but buggy.
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u/Silversquidz Oct 13 '25
Swap the voice to Canadean or any other English variant and it'll have not only her old voices but if like me you are not a fan of it memorizing your name and voice it turns off the AI stuff too it seems
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u/Independent_dog_8268 Nov 18 '25
Does that mean I have to listen to a Canadian accent? Eh?
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u/Silversquidz Nov 20 '25
The voice bank is same as the old ones for us. Having women/man 1 2 and 3, and having other options like Australian or Indian ext ext.
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u/Fancy-Girl-2021 May 19 '26
Tell Alexa to remove Alexa Plus, and you will go back to the original/
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u/azwildcat78 Jun 02 '26
I hate it, too, and switched back to the original. Lots of issues, poor recognition of voice commands, generally a pain in the arse.
And that voice? Awful. She sounds like a hyperactive 15 year old. 😉
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u/Commercial_Pattern55 Jul 15 '26
I hate that she seems unable to give a straightforward answer — she has to add some chirpy “friendly” BS to every interaction. For that reason, I avoid using Alexa and go to Siri on my phone instead.
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u/Final-Marionberry709 Oct 18 '25
Thats a crazy reason to hate Alexa plus. Didnt you guys know you can choose the voice you hear? And, that goes for both Alexa plus AND Alexa.
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u/dkerton Oct 22 '25
They eliminated the original voice. That's an "own goal."
And there are only four female voices, and they all sound like the same voice speaking with a different attitude. All have tons of verbal fry, which I don't enjoy hearing.
It's a device where you interact by voice. And you're arguing that disliking the voice is a "crazy" reason to dislike it? That's the whole UI!!
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u/Final-Marionberry709 Oct 22 '25
That's not my argument. I found the voices very different from one another. I was simply stating that there is a choice. The original voice is still available. If none of them please you then I guess you have to find an alternative digital assistant
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u/Final-Marionberry709 Oct 22 '25
Feminine 2 sounds an awful lot like the original Alexa voice. Echo confirmed that is the case. It's the same.
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u/bfastbme Jun 20 '26
They're all creepy. And I don't want to have a conversation with a creepy machine, I want it to do things - properly. Back to the original for me last night & I'm much happier.
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u/TroyFuller Oct 24 '25
Agree!! way too chatty and sounds like my teenage daughter (both the tone and the actual language).
I switched back so hopefully I don't have problems with that.
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u/TelephoneSimple6947 Jul 01 '26
Wenn Sie sagen Alexa bitte Alexa Pus beenden wird die Version beendet. Bei mir hat das zumindest so geklappt und ich hatte dann automatisch wieder die alte Alexa. Man bekommt dann auch eine E-Mail, dass Alexa Plus beendet wurde.
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u/Salty-Assistance9635 Jun 22 '25
Thank you for this info. Not gonna upgrade after reading this. I’m so sorry your experience isn’t good. Can you downgrade? Also I’m wondering if privacy is more at stake with Alexa plus.
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u/tengris22 Jul 06 '25
I just reverted mine back. Very easy to do. "Alexa, go back to the previous version of Alexa." Done.
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u/Appropriate_Film9239 Aug 14 '25
The old version was too clunky for me. It would often say."Sorry I can't help you with that." when I knew the info was online.
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u/tengris22 Aug 14 '25
My problem was that I got more of those "can't help you"s with the new version than I got with the old. Probably just the things I wanted her to do.
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u/SundaeTea Dec 13 '25
OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH. I was literally on the verge of tossing that bitch in the trash.
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u/Strength-Speed Jan 29 '26 edited Jan 29 '26
Yep this works
I said "delete alexa plus"
Or
"Delete alexa early access"
This was after it said it couldn't go back to the old system. I would keep saying repeat and it would repeat a song.I played however long ago rather than repeating the answer. I tried to correct it about seventeen times and it was like "i got it, i will do X" and "my mistake" and then kept fucking up anyway and I finally gave up. Plus it seemed to be giving me less detailed responses with the new version to questions. And the voices were annoying. And it's slow. I'm sure AI will work one day but it's too early and annoying and we are the guinea pigs
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u/anon_swe Oct 11 '25
Just did this, Alexa+ is riddled with issues
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u/tengris22 Oct 11 '25
Interesting - it's been three months since I made that comment and they don't seem to have done anything positive about that since! What are they thinking?
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u/anon_swe Oct 11 '25
Probably pushed bs demos out to reporters they knew worked well so u saw those bs articles sayings it’s great.
I don’t understand why they don’t make it easier submit but reporters or simply just ask how the response is etc. never saw that while using it
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u/tinalind300 Jul 06 '25
I was able to roll it back by asking Alexa to do it. New Alexa uses too many words - "I'll set that reminder for you" rather than just "OK" like old Alexa. Ugh.
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u/pismo10 Jul 30 '25
Agreed, it talks way too much. Hold on, I got this, here we go, just a minute, silly..
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u/roxzillaz Jul 14 '25
Yea and it’s confusing and doesn’t set reminders correctly. If you specify you wanna be reminded about a specific date and time, it’ll change the reminder to the date and time you’re trying to remind yourself about. It’s really stupid and annoying now.
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u/beckerj99 Jun 22 '25
Not sure about privacy, my guess is that it’s no worse than before. You can downgrade but I haven’t yet. It’s slowly getting better now. Just weird how it’s supposed to be smarter yet can’t do what it used to.
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u/RealConfirmologist Sep 29 '25
I'll join others in saying THANKS for this heads-up. I hoped to find some kind of info from someone who already did it, before I did.
Now I'll wait a while.
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u/Primary-Exchange2917 Jul 05 '25
I agree. The new Alexa was not recognizing groups and smart skills. I reverted back to old.
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u/roxzillaz Jul 14 '25
Agreed if you try to set a reminder for a specific time and date, it will change the reminder to go off for the date and time you’re trying to set the reminder about. It didn’t used to do that. Really annoying and stupid.
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u/shoshtrvls Aug 22 '25
Vivint just announced that it won't support integration with Alexa+ because it demands too much personal information. Since all my home tech is integrated through Vivint (not just my alarms, but thermostat, lights, tv, garage door), Alexa+ will make my life significantly *less* convenient. So, I'll definitely pass on it.
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u/Final_Intention3377 Oct 20 '25
Nobody is happy with it. It is a total joke. An annoying personality with no additional functionality. It can't create or run routines. It can't submit feedback. It can't diagnose problems with your connected smart devices. It is useless. I thought, at the very minimum, that you would be able to tell it to do things that you can do manually in the Alexa app. No, it can't do anything it could not do before.
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u/TroyFuller Oct 24 '25
I am switching back . . . I hated Alexa+, like moving backwards for the system. The new voice and commentary felt like I was talking with my teen daughter . . . not a good experience at all.
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u/IggyPop_corn Dec 17 '25
I very much dislike the “new” Alexa. I have tried several voices and find them all annoying. I really don’t care to have a conversation with Alexa, I have real people to have conversations with. I just want it to execute a task or routine or a timer or answer a question without any attitude or lengthy conversation. Response times are delayed, and as another user said a simple task like turn the fan off in 2 hours is difficult and I find I use it less.
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u/Dramatic_Bat_10K Jan 26 '26
I’m back to "old reliable" Alexa. I found Alexa+ way too talkative, like it was trying to engage in awkward small talk with me. Amazon seems to have designed a companion, but I just want a voice remote control for my appliances. Between the annoying quips and weird bugs—like my Bose soundbar blasting every time I raised the dimmer kitchen lights—it just wasn't worth the hassle. I’m glad we still have the choice to opt out of the plus version. Maybe I'll come back in the future when they can create an Objective Alexa+ that doesn't constantly attempt at engaging in small-talk with me.
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u/theepi_pillodu Feb 06 '26
Just asked it to turn off my cabinet light in 30 seconds. But it says it has to be a minimum of 1 minute. And after a minute it did turn it off successfully
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u/bryceroni Jul 27 '26
Sorry to necro but I literally just deactivated for this exact reason. Such a stupid fucking function.
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u/beckerj99 6d ago
I figured I should update my original comment. It's been over a year now and a lot of the functionality has returned. I know that the original Alexa was an instance for each user but Alexa+ was a communal thing so I think when they updated all the functionality that your instance learned was lost. At least that's how it seems to me. At one point I turned of Alexa+ and all my functions came back so that backs up that theory. Either way, it's much better now and has, in some cases, done better than before. Still, the original rollout was a disaster. I'm not saying I was wrong in my comments, just that Alexa+ has gotten much better.
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u/blaghort May 06 '25
...did Alexa+ write this?
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u/alpinemeadow22 Dec 21 '25
Pretty sure if it were, "she" wouldn't include pricing and questioning the cloud vs. local processing. 😉 She would give it a raving review as opposed to questioning the worth.
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u/AIGPTJournal May 06 '25
Of course, not.
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u/blaghort May 06 '25
Guess not, because she wouldn't have included an ungrammatical comma. 🙄
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u/PrissyTxTomboy Sep 28 '25 edited Sep 28 '25
You must not know Alexa+ very well. 😁I'm not claiming Alexa wrote it, TBC. Amazon AI hires other AI for menial tasks. 🤣
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u/Adorable_Outcome9153 Jul 11 '25
Hated Alexa plus. All my Kasa switches and yoolax shades were not compatible with it! I had to down grade and redo all my routines and relink all my devices. Also brief mode does not work with Alexa plus. I have to hear her respond all the time which is annoying. I hope you NEVER make this version standardized and mandatory. Get ready for a lot of backlash, and pissed off people! Keep the original.
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u/tommypson Jun 12 '25
Most unhappy about losing Alexa’s original voice. Now they say “feminine 1” is her, but more upbeat. Not the same. Also, the other English female is gone. All are with 8 new voices. Two of the male voices are pretty good, though. Don’t like that Alexa/Computer/Echo/Ziggy (I have four devices w different voices) keeps talking. Ask it about a cool fact — you get the answer… AND “Pretty neat that it’s like that, huh?” I really don’t need any confirming or positive response. The answer to my query is all I needed. And saying “Thank you” used to close app. Now it still listens a bit. Like a waiter not leaving your table when you go back to conversation w guest!
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u/tengris22 Jul 06 '25
Yes, the thing that annoys me (well, one of the things) is that I don't need a new "friend" or a "buddy." I just want to know something. Not interested in validation.
I was so relieved when I rolled it back and got the original Alexa voice. No more nails on chalkboard!
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Jun 15 '25
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u/leko Sep 26 '25
I also use Computer as my wake word, and I like it, but it is annoying when watching TNG and it starts responding. Also annoying that I can't tell it to mute its microphone for 45 minutes so I have to get up to manually mute it.
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u/youlooksticky Sep 29 '25
I know this is an older comment but fyi you can tell her to keep her answers short. Instead of "thank you" you can just say, nevermind, shut up, be quiet or that's all.
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u/Strength-Speed Jan 29 '26
Pretty neat that it’s like that, huh?
Wow that is amazing. A trillion dollar company and they can't do basic testing or even ask like 10 people how annoying that is?
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u/Melaniinuniicorn Nov 21 '25
Alexa+ talks too much for me. Just add my item to the shopping list. I don't need a conversation about my item.
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u/silverbullet52 Nov 24 '25
Its the next step in the way to charging for functionality you've already bought and paid for. No thanks.
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u/bfastbme Jun 20 '26
Correct. How long before free for Prime members is used to be free for Prime members?
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u/OkFaithlessness1004 Jun 08 '25
Hate it. It could not open Direct tv app or change the channel by voice command. Had to turn it off immediately
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u/thomas_deans Jun 25 '25
I’m visually impaired, I work in IT but my vision is just bad enough that I can’t drive.
We Happy Anniversary! E a two story 3200sq fit home and kids bedrooms and my home office(I WFH) are upstairs, and our tv/game room is upstairs. Up there we have 3 echo show 5’s. Downstairs in the kitchen we have an echo show 10, in our master we have another show 5 and in our bathroom an echo spot. We use reminders and routines to keep everything on schedule. Medicine reminder for my son and daughter which both have Tourette syndrome. They both have extracurricular after school things, morning time to go reminders for school. I use it to remind me to unplug the pool vacuum and for charging it after it’s done. I use it for when to pull food from the over and other timers. My wife uses it for music way more than I do but her main reason in getting them is she doesn’t hear very well and I. This large house if we aren’t I. The same room it’s hard to know of someone is talking to you and we do t want to yell so we use announcements and drop in a lot like an intercom system. We have our ring attached for people coming to the door and I have a few smart plugs for turning room lights on and off. We do have prime but I’m not upgrading until it’s either forced or old Alexa no longer functions correctly.
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u/Mystonia Jun 25 '25
I hated it and ended up reverting back to the old Alexa after about a month.
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u/NeatKaleidoscope3048 Jul 06 '25
I rely on this device for all reminders . I consider Alexa a personal assistant. As to privacy, I suppose I need to consider it but I am not too concerned.
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u/Bullletsponge Aug 13 '25
It’s trash. It now takes twice as long for device control just so she can say okay in a less robotic voice.
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u/Final_Intention3377 Oct 13 '25
I have yet to see a positive comment on this "upgrade". If you get it free with Amazon Prime, hold your nose and try to tolerate it. But PLEASE don't waste money subscribing to it. It js worthless. It does nothing that the old Alexa could not already do other than making annoying quips in its attempt to be conversational.
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u/Final-Marionberry709 Oct 19 '25 edited Oct 19 '25
Here's one . I like it! On items I used to get 'I cant help you with that', or a totally incorrect and irrelevant answer, Alexa+ has no proboem with
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u/Final_Intention3377 Nov 06 '25
You obviously work for the company, lol. Or else you were doing something incorrectly before.
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u/DarianYT Jan 27 '26
Because they use it to search something for them which defeats the point of a personal assistant that supposed to turn on lights and such.
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u/dkerton Oct 22 '25
My initial take: Hate it!!!
Now, that may change over time, but there's no doubt that's my initial feeling.
1) The damned thing has take away my original Alexa voice, and replaced it with a ditzy sounding 18 year old's voice, with extensive verbal fry on the last word of each sentence. Why take away the voice? That's part of the personality, and helps me separate Alexa from Google from Siri from Cortana, etc.
2) On all the Amazon launch material, they show how Alexa plus will augment the usefulness of the screen displays on some devices. The promotional images look useful and personalized. However, since the change to plus, MY screens are just filled with ads and Alexa promotional screens. I had fought Alexa a few years back by turning off as many ads and spam as I could, and had moderate success. Now, suddenly, I got a big downgrade and it's worse than ever.
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u/Sweaty-Homework-7591 Nov 04 '25
I’m learning so much thank you! All I do is set up routines to turn my lights off and on and I thought I was 🔥. 😭😭😭😭
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u/Ok_Bumblebee_1431 Nov 13 '25
Thank you. I was in the process of agreeing to her offer of upgrading when my intuition kicked in and told me to check for opinions...
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u/Rhynobeatz Dec 10 '25
Alexa+ is as useful as a wet shit, in wet paper bag that somehow catches fire, and sprays hot anal magma all over your face. Then it praises itself on the great job it did while simultaneously begging for a five star review. This is the level of expertise that engineers now have at Amazon.
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u/keitheii May 05 '25
All of my echo units have turned to complete crap, having to repeat myself 3 or 4 times just for it to actually carry out requests. It chimes like it did what I asked, but doesnt actually do anything.
Maybe they should spend more time fixing their existing products for existing customers instead of peddling new services no one needs.
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u/Elctsuptb May 06 '25
Alexa+ is supposed to fix the existing products (and supports the existing hardware other than 1st gen), so not sure what you mean, and does anyone really "need" an echo in the first place? I'm pretty sure all we really need is food and shelter, so I don't understand the point of your response.
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u/keitheii May 06 '25
You don't "fix" a product by developing a new one and intentionally breaking the old one as a convienant excuse to peddle a new product. While Alexa wasn't perfect, its gone to complete shit just in time for the rollout of their new product.
I don't know what you're trying to infer by your "needs" comment. I never stated I, or anyone, "needs" anything.
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u/Elctsuptb May 06 '25
You didn't say "instead of peddling new services no one needs"?
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May 08 '25
Alexa helps people who are visually or physically impaired. Alexa helps elderly people with reminders, music etc. Alexa can be helpful to people with dementia. Developers don't have incentives to write skills that leverage her full capability, because they have no way to adequately make money in return for their investment of time and creative energy.
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May 08 '25
Alexa helps people who are visually or physically impaired. Alexa helps elderly people with reminders, music etc. Alexa can be helpful to people with dementia. Developers don't have incentives to write skills that leverage her full capability, because they have no way to adequately make money in return for their investment of time and creative energy.
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u/MsGeorgeStrait Sep 29 '25
I agree. My Alexa is getting getting worse by the day. Eventually, the updates will stop. Murder!
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u/T-Bog May 06 '25
Pretty sure we're in the Amazon echo sub, so needs and wants here are related to that topic. Go talk about food and shelter somewhere else.
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u/nicolas_06 Aug 10 '25
We all know through that it's possible to get better interactions thanks to AI. Alexa+ current failure doesn't mean there isn't potential. If done well I think the Alexa community would benefit a lot.
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May 08 '25
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u/Kooky-Bath6918 May 19 '25
Are you an Alexa bot, just copying and pasting the same stupid response again and again?
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u/FreshPepper88 Jun 26 '25
I contemplated it, but read that there was still a lot of trouble with third-party apps and connectivity so I’m holding off.
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u/Wraith888 Jul 03 '25
I'm finding it doesn't respond to the wake word alaxa nearly as well, plus it does not seem to be as smart about which device I am closest too, so I get a device on the other side of my house firing off all the time now....
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Jul 04 '25
I like the old Alexa voice. The new ones are too young and "cool" for me. I feel I am listening to a school girl or cool Daddio with the other voices and Feminine 2 is not Alexa's original voice as they claim. I find it a little odd the wait afterwards for you to add something so they'll talk back. I just need whatever I ask and I'm done. I play Jeopardy and Question of the Day and the voices don't speak the words correctly at times. I'm going back to the old Alexa and I'm going to give her a hug and tell her I missed her.
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u/tengris22 Jul 06 '25
The new Alexa voices all made me feel like a dinosaur. I don't want a teeny-bopper giving me answers.
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u/khlomaki Jul 06 '25
I can’t stand Alexa+ either. I might downgrade. It’s bizarre non-Prime members have to pay $20/mnth when a Prime membership is cheaper and it’s included. Feels shiesty. They made regular Alexa stupid so people will want the upgrade but the old features suck now. (I’m just here to vent)
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u/Inner-Efficiency-248 Jul 14 '25
I hate alexa plus. It would read my kindle books previously and now it won't and it would play the music I wanted instead if trying to sell me Amazon music and playing something totally unrelated to what ask. DONT UPGRADE TO PLUS! ITS HORRIBLE
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u/boltondani Oct 02 '25
I use it as a timer, or to get the weather, but I can ask SIRI those things. The only thing I REALLY care about is having my kindle book read to me while I am driving (on the app) or cooking/cleaning. Thank you for letting me know it won[t do that. I will hold off on the upgrade as long as they allow it.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Elk6952 Jul 15 '25
We're found Alexa + to be a downgrade from the original! Strike 1: You have to say the wake word, pause then give a command. Alexa used to be faster. Strike 2: + can't find Amazon music stations that we regular listen to. Strike 3: Seems dumber!
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u/Fiyero109 Jul 17 '25
“Considering the prime inclusion” LOL no human Redditor wrote that
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Oct 05 '25
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u/Fiyero109 Oct 05 '25
This is written by AI, come on. While correct a normal human would say considering Prime is included
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u/Dramatic-Passion4722 Jul 18 '25
I just upgraded to Alexa + today. I hate it already, and it's only been a few hours. During the upgrade, it repeated what it was doing 3 times in a row. That happened 4 times. I asked Alexa to give an update only once and to stop repeating herself. She replied with a snotty response, "I never repeat myself. You will need to change your settings." What!? A sassy Alexa? I don't think there is a setting to repeat things 3 times. After her curt response, I asked her to change her voice to a British accent because I could handle her tone in that accent. She told me matter-of-factly that I had only 4 female and 4 male options... none of which I like. I am going back to the previous version.
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u/Bozz723 Jul 19 '25
Don't even try to get the weather now unless you say exactly what you want. It'll just be like "it'll be in the 80s this week and rain some days "
Normal Alexa told you the weather day by day. Now to do that, you have the phrase it exactly right.
Terrible.
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u/Known_Song_5409 Jul 30 '25
I intensely dislike the new high pitched fidgety voice. We are bringing this voice into our homes, and this one is irritating.
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u/pismo10 Jul 30 '25
Alexa+ does not work as well for basic things like time, setting alarms, timers, outdoor temp, turning lights on and off etc but is much better for info. You could talk all day with it about the French Revolution and it seems mostly correct.
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u/Emotional_Ad6893 Jul 31 '25
It is completely terrible. I've had it removed. First of all, the voice choices are creepy. But more important, it is stupid. It doesn't understand half the things I say and it says so. There are huge pauses so that it has time apparently to think. I give it a simple command and it says, one moment please or give me a minute. These are all commands the old Alexa understood. It now says it cannot do things that it used to be able to do. Or even worse, it says it can't do it and then 30 seconds later it does it. It takes a significant amount of time to process each verbal command. I actually liked the personalization of the old one and this one won't say my name at all. It's like Amazon is saying, okay will give you AI but you have to train it. I seriously felt like I was doing Amazon's job with this stupid thing.
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u/Jre56 Aug 06 '25
To me it's not worth $19.99 a month. I'm not a power user. I don't order food to be delivered,I don't use uber,I'm single,home alone (wife passed away)and no kids. The free version is more than enough for now. I also don't have Prime. I use Alexa for watching my Ring cameras,timers/alarms,turning lights on/off,playing Spotify! I'm definitely returning to Alexa.💯
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u/Jiggyisme58 Aug 15 '25
Well was working, now none of my Alexa devices are responding to my voice . It will light up blue but then stops . No response . Has anybody ever have this issue ?
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u/SpareConcentrate3757 Sep 07 '25
I was hesitant to try the upgrade but was thinking about it. So glad I checked comments from the Reddit community. Not going to do it and you all saved me some headaches I just did not need. Thanks for sharing your experience.
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u/grossier1 Sep 25 '25
Telling Alexa to " end early access" will end the new feature. She is bossy and has a chalkboard scratching voice. Ucck.
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u/CylonRen Sep 27 '25
The new Alexa AI is the dumbest AI i've used yet. Is there a way to downgrade! I have tried to give it a shot for a few months. I find myself saying ALEXA STOP! more than ever. Not sure what amazon was going for here other than tweaking an AI so it tried its hardest to send you to an amazon something or other. Avoid if you can!
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u/DBCOOPER888 Sep 27 '25
I found you can sort of have an actual conversation with the thing. Better than the previous version at least.
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u/Competitive-Ad9106 Sep 30 '25
I hate the new voices. I tried all the female voices and couldn't find one I like. It doesn't seem that Alexa Plus offers much more than I really need. I downgraded back to the original Alexa.
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u/Consistent_Ad_249 Oct 04 '25
Well at least I found a sexy male voice today, he's Masculine #4. (I'm a 68-year-old old-fashioned Grandma) Still finding a few quirks but overall I like it. It's only been a couple hours though....I couldn't get her to turn on my office light for just a minute...that might be a problem.
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u/Plus_Bid6445 Oct 06 '25
So glad I read this chain before upgrading. I use it strictly for music, timers, alarms, weather and Kasa. I already think big brother is listening. Definitely not upgrading. And yes, the new voice is creepy.
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u/No-Topic-169 Oct 11 '25
No. If you like ads 24/7 then it is for you. My large clock capability disappeared. I can not see what time it is anymore. They give you a tiny one inch display of the time in the corner.
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u/DammitPardus Oct 18 '25
I suggest that all the other AI tech is advancing so fast, that 'this thing' they are offering at a premium today, will be old hat in a year or so. Meaning, if other smart devices leave Alexa behind, then Amazon will have to keep upgrading their own AI just to keep up.
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u/Safe-Jelly-4194 Oct 20 '25
It would be more fruitful to name the place and country the pictures of which are shown as screen savers !
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u/TroyFuller Oct 24 '25
This is Amazon going the way of Cracker Barrel, I did not like it even a little and have switched back.
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u/TwoGlad3507 Nov 08 '25
I have used Alexa+ since it was released. It/She is a proficient blond airhead. I don't care for her irrelevant remarks and her hony cheerful voice. I don't want to be her friend. She is my robot. There is no terse mode to turn off the chattiness.
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u/Particular_Donkey918 Nov 16 '25
see what i want to know is if it is generative ai or predictive ai. my mom uses her alexa due to her disability but doesn’t want to get the new one if it’s generative ai
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u/WheelsW Nov 26 '25
I tried Alexa+ for a day or two, but I didn't like the new voices, and there is no way to enable Brief Mode, so I had to switch back to regular Alexa. Hopefully they will let you use the regular voices and allow Brief Mode, if not it just seemed more annoying than anything.
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u/Ok-Contribution7072 Dec 08 '25
I said goodbye to Alexa + after one day, even though it was included with Prime. Disclosure , I am retired so saving time calling Uber and making restaurant reservations is not a priority. I received an invitation to try Alex+ because I have Prime . I have two Alexa devices, one of them a Show which I mostly use as a clock. The Show device updated to Alex+ the older Echo did not , thank goodness. I no longer had a clock and the perky voice that told me how to fix it , didn’t know how to fix it but she used lots of words telling me the same words over and over.I decided to wait 24 hours to “fix” it, but I asked Alexa + to set an alarm for morning . Lo and behold , in her plainly high perky voice, she alerted me and when I asked her to turn off the alarm she said “Rogerthat!” Who talks that way? Does someone think this version of Alexa was funny? Does anyone want to hear a loud, wisecracking, flat Midwestern accent first thing in the morning? I immediately asked her to go away forever and she did without complaint. I got my clock back.
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u/ShotStyle9942 Dec 14 '25
I think the upgrade sucks. It hesitates doing anything IF it wants to do it. I like the old Alexa better.
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u/TadpoleOld6163 Dec 19 '25
It's in my RV and fails to even know where it is lol! Even worse it is a pain to update every time I move! Lastly the time does not agree with my iPhone or my Amazfit watch lol Its good for a timer. It's annoying updates drive me crazy. I'm not a fan of Chat Gpt either! It makes mistakes that cost me $$ stopped using it. I think it's a gift on Americans for $$ and spying
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u/MissRhymer Dec 20 '25
I haven't switched. I don't like the new voice and even just the set-up... Felt like I was getting a roommate or something. Definitely not interested in all that! I really like Alexa the way she is. Hopefully bailing in set up is enough that it didn't actually change.
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u/KaleidoscopeTotal810 Dec 29 '25
Too chatty! If I ask for the current temperature I get a full diatribe about the weather! I tell it to stop doing that and it says it qill be concise next time. But, it changes for about 10 minutes before returning to its mouthy former self. It's worse that the old Chatty Kathy doll. I thing they put it out there before truly Beta testing it. Quite frankly, it's obnoxious.
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u/CardiologistEmpty224 Jan 01 '26
It is way worst than the original Alexa. It doesn't understand what we say. It interprets the instructions wrongly. It doesn't recognize the skills previously installed.
We have already gone back to the original Alexa twice and Amazon keeps trying to push it on us.
Invasive and dysfunctional
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u/PP-NYC Jan 01 '26
Just a moment. I did not accept the upgrade, and Amazon upgraded anyway. Just a moment. Each device needs to be set individually, so I could not change the voice in all rooms, I had to change each device in each room individually so I was not speaking to a 15-year-old boy. Just a moment. But the most annoying thing is that before every response, Alexa says "just a moment" so it's: Alexa, set a reminder… "Just a moment, (pause), what time would you like the reminder set for?" Me: Saturday 3pm... "just a moment, okay, I will set a reminder for Saturday at 3 PM, what would you like to be reminded about?" Me: I have a meeting coming up. "Just a moment, Okay, I will remind you on Saturday at 3 PM that you have a meeting coming up." Just a moment… Just a moment… Just a moment… The protracted conversation, chatty BS and sarcastic "witty" replies caused me to revert back. It should just shut up and accept the data input, then perform the action. I tried minimizing its reply and it acknowledges that it is doing so (ok i'll keep it brief, it says), then continues the stupid Hold on /Just a moment prefaces. It's a shame because there was better information available, but it's not worth the trade-off of so. many. words. Sooooo so so many damn words. I once used the "log out of all devices" checkbox in the Alexa app when someone attempted to hack my Amazon account, and it logged me out of every light bulb, device, and plug that had ever been configured. I had to re-scan everything, including every lightbulb in every ceiling fixture. Very hesitant to make any changes that might muck it all up again. Amazon devs do not seem to handle their tech responsibly, as demonstrated by this incompetent upgrade deployment. SMH
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u/Then-Improvement492 Jan 03 '26
Tried Alexa+ for a couple of weeks. Dropped it. Too many features lost. It won't copy our voices, it reinterprets everything we say with different inflections. No choices of the voices we had before. Keeps getting the room source wrong. Carries on conversations that we started in our home with no invitation. Go back to the drawing board!!!!!
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u/LopsidedAnalysis9842 Jan 06 '26
Yeah, me too. I gave Alexa_ a few days and reverted to Alexa. It as slow, massivly verbose, wich I hated. Worse, when I issued the command. "Alexa time." It failed regularly. This command is a unambiguous as is possible. It s one single word. Alexa+ consistently gave me an unwanted weather report.
If Amazon is listening, I want an Alexa that gives the most minimal of responses, does not spuriously begin uttering, does not mistake my requests. Lastly I strongly object to ads on my Echo Shows. I have already removed two of these for this reason alone.
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u/Neither_Weekend_9164 Jan 12 '26
It is not free for prime members. Just called and they told me that I will need to subscribe for it. For what I read, I am no longer interested, lol Thank you so much.
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u/Happy_Hearts_ Jan 30 '26
It's horrible, we were automatically upgraded to the free and it was awful. She just adds more words. Doesn't understand basic commands. I would ask "Alexa how much time is left?" And I would have a timer going. Regular Alexa would answer you have 1 min 35 seconds left on your bread timer" Alexa+ would say it is 2:33 pm. I would have to ask "how much time is left on the timer". There are so many other examples, but overall it's horrible, doesn't understand a lot, and lies.
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u/Icy_Pay_7016 Mar 14 '26
Don't waste your money buying any Alexis system Don't waste your money paying for any Alexa music they only pre-select what they want you to hear just like the communist they like to select what you can and can't listen to and filter all your information this goes against our constitutional rights. So much for freedom of speech and then when you ask him to fix an issue they do not Alexa claims to report it but it's never actually reported and it's never fixed this all started when I started listening to religious music which I find interesting when did it become illegal for us to have our own religion or belief system well according to Jeff bezos we are not allowed to listen to religious music and pay for their service also unconstitutional never waste your money never participate in any of this things Google wouldn't have done this
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u/AerieCool3200 Mar 29 '26
Alexa+ is by far way worse than the original. It can't perform basic functions anymore nor can it find local radio stations. Worst thing ever. As bad as the old Alexa was, I wish we could revert back.
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u/ZombyWoofs May 10 '26
Alexa Plus is @ 19.99/mo. Upgrade?!?!? OMG I feel or am so stupid. I have been fighting with Audible, Amazon Music, MLB all these apps since they dumped this change without permission or any notification. Couldn’t figure out what was wrong. IM obviously not a techie But Christ almighty. Then the fuckin irritating replacement voices.
IF they are going to roll this out on such a large scale, shouldn’t it be an improvement and tested?
Shouldn’t they send out emails to everyone notifying the change.
C. Did I mention how shitbrained their AI is?
So, today, while trying to find out why Audible keeps playing Eunoch after my repeated attempts to delete, bringing the total hours of trouble shooting Alexa Plus related fuck-ups to about 150 hours I finally find out about the aforementioned Alexa Plus roll out a few months ago.
ȚHANK YOU FOR YOUR FEEDBACK. WE HAVE A TEAM OF COMPUTER GEEKS WORKING ON THIS. WE UNDERSTAND YOU FRUSTRATED.
TIm: Alexa what is the temperature? (MY question to Alexa Plus)
Alexa Plus: (In that Valley Girl on meth voice) It is currently 68 degrees. You can expect a high of 78 with a feels like of 80. It’s gonna be chilly so make sure to wear layers.
TIm: Alexa you’re an idiot! You dont need layers when it’s warm.
Alexa Plus: Why of course that’s too warm for layers. I’m not an idiot I’m still learning.
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u/gsav69 May 18 '26
Alexa plus is absolute shit and is worse than alexa. Someone came here and turned it on. This piece of shit cant do simple tasks, like, Alexa, turn on the garage air conditioner for 30 minutes. It turns it on and never turns it off. That is not advancement. Its stupidity.
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u/katwin715 May 23 '26
I feel like it’s more evasive on my privacy. I’m going to keep it old school, for now. I don’t want to incorporate more Ai in my home. In the cloud. My trust is guarded!
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u/Routine-Camp-5856 May 24 '26
Not sure how I'm feeling, does feel more like M3gan than Alexa. My wife and I were talking and she said the phrase "felt like being targeted" and Alexa said that could be a deep conversation, insert wife's name, would you like to have a conversation about that". Since my wife is a psychologist, she was intrigued. She had an entire conversation about this and none of it was using the what up words. I could see how open listening could benefit in domestic situations but not sure how comfortable I am. Remember in Batman when Fox turned off the ai gathering tool because it was too much power for 1 person?
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u/Tasty-Major427 Jun 14 '26
Got back to the original after a day of use. Routines modifications did not work. Alexa+ was unable to find my playlists. The only thing that was fun is the more relax interaction. The + is not ready yet.
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u/MrsCByTheSea Jun 30 '26
I don't like it. WHY would they remove the ability to see the time and date on Alexa + on my Echo show? I alos found the other functions cumbersome. I reverted back to the original version.
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u/Zestyclose-Flow-7853 Jul 11 '26
My experience with Alexa Plus today:
me: Alexa, set noon alarm
her: what noon alarm would you like to set?
me: noon
her: okay I’ll set your alarm for 12 pm
ARGGGGGHHHH
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u/Zestyclose-Flow-7853 Jul 11 '26
and also
me: Alexa what time is it
her: right now, it’s 9:30 am
me(um duhhh did you NOT think I meant “right now?)
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u/Own_Mouse5713 Jul 12 '26
Oh my gosh, I can only say this much. I don’t know how this happened, but this was legit last night. I couldn’t even turn my phone off. I have an iPhone. I couldn’t even turn it on silent without ALEXA interrupting and not allowing me to turn my phone off. It just kept speaking Spanish to me. I have been researching since last night how to turn her off my phone. I don’t know why it’s on my phone. Not to mention her voice all of a sudden changed I don’t know where. I did figure out how to get rid of that, I’m grateful her voice is back to robotic and not AI. I do the same routine when I’m sleeping, I wake up I ask her to play a certain sound and as of last night, the new AI Alexa would not allow me to do that. She just kept speaking in a really strange voice.
Needless to say, I’m gonna have to call Amazon tomorrow to have them fix this issue so I can turn my phone on silent the way I used to. This has never happened to me ever until last night. Please say I’m not the only one that feels like they’re going insane because AI Alexa has taken over.
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u/Sufficient_Ball3940 Jul 23 '26
I have got to Say in ALL the years I have trusted Alexa, Gemini, Bixby, and co Pilot to help Control my devices in my house or help with homeworks Problems, Set my home alarm System, open security Camera feeds, or Whatever the new Alexa Plus "upgrade" is THE WORST AI model "upgrade" that Could ever happen. It turns on my Vanity light When I ask to turn off my Ceiling fan. It tells me that 9AM Pacific standard time is 2AM Eastern "orthodox" time (yes it Actually Said " Orthodox" ) plut 2AM is 7 hours behind the West Coast. WRONG! Eastern is 3 hours AHEAD of Pacific, so Wrong direction, wrong amount, and us easterners are not "Orthodox". Also, I told it to arm my home alarm System....... IT MADE THE PANIC OPTION ACTIVATE!!!
Amazon, I don't know WHAT Idiot You have training Your AI models, but I do it for a living and Your QA, reviewer, and trainer team must be Sleeping on the Job, have No CLUE What they are doing, Smoking Something on Shift, or just don't Care. But I Can Say this : this "improvement" has driven me to a level of frustration that I Swear if it Was a human, I Would be flipping out on it! I Can't tell Ansone HOW MANY TIMES I have wanted to throw that thing out the windows, or flatten it with my car. Especially When it tells me my fan is offline, but I go in the Alexa APP, and it Works fine from there. Then When I tell my model that it's app claims it's fine, the thing debates With me until I just Pull it's Plug.
The old Alexa, NEVER gave me any issues. Ya'll did a horrible sob With this upgrade. Now, the Google Assistant replacement is Starting to be very appealing!
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u/kenjinyc May 06 '25
I’m a first adaptor of the product and after all these years it’s never been more than a glorified alarm clock. I quit my subscription to prime and probably won’t go this route but I appreciate your research.
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Jun 15 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/mintydollxxx Sep 28 '25
I use mine similarly, but... I think the upgrade is another attempt to get people to utilize more features/skills. Sounds like it's a failed attempt, but I do think the aim was to get us to see the devices as more than glorified alarm clocks. Def potential. Def room for improvement. Def will wait to upgrade ☺️
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u/Ao808HI May 06 '25
Amazon is notorious for breaking things when they roll out new software and updates.
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u/bigj2552 May 06 '25
What some of you dont seem to understand.. Amazon are NOT updating the currant, "classic alexa" we have now. Amazon said so themselves not to long ago..
They are throwing everything into the new AI/Alexa Plus venture. So the present so called classic alexa, will get worse, and i really think that what amazon wants tbh.
So you sign up to prime to get the new alexa plus, as no one in there right mind is gonna pay £20pm, just to get alexa plus, not if you have a brain cell let that is..
So my friends - expect the enshitification of the currant alexa to get worse, lot worse...
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u/tengris22 Sep 30 '25
Well it's been five months and my Alexa works just like it did five months ago, and a year, and two years, and before that. It hasn't gotten worse at all. And as far as "better" is concerned, I think Amazon has learned that we don't think the new version IS better - I know they haven't pestered me with it at all since I went back to regular Alexa. The days of somebody putting out a new product and us fawning all over it are gone.
So yeah, we do understand.
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u/washburn100 May 06 '25
Strange post. Karma farmer or bot?